Right, i need your advice! Am getting freaked out at the importance of the synopsis. How long should it be? I am about to send my submission off to a number of agents but obviously being a total novice, i really dont know what the hell I am doing! Any advice whatsoever would be very very welcome xxx

There is a WW Synopsis and Outline Group where you can upload your synopsis for review, MissScarlett, and there are threads on there with pointers on how to write a synopsis, although it is difficult to generalize on such things, since synopsises are like patent leather shoes - made to fit the person, aka the story.
As a broad rule of thumb, one page is good; two pages if it is particularly complex. Avoid getting bogged down in sub-plots and minor characters. Last but not least, include the ending, and don't skimp on the ending.

Good luck,


NaomiM

<Added>

here's thee link:

http://www.writewords.org.uk/groups/80.asp#forum

Thats so helpful! That is basically what I have, but you know what its like when you are looking to lots of different sources for advice and sometimes you end up more clueless than when you started!

Welcome to WW, MissScarlett. If you're really a total novice…

1) Don’t rush. Writing is a skill that takes a long time and a lot of hard work to master. Very few novelists are successful with their first book. Most have at least two or three which they consider practice runs.

2) Get some feedback on your work from more experienced writers before you start punting it around agents. 95% of the slushpile is work that hasn’t been properly edited and polished.

3) Have a look at the groups on here – you can join one while you're on your free try-out, more when you sign up as a paying member.

4) Read as much as you can lay your hands on of your chosen genre, both published books and the pieces other group members have uploaded. And give feedback on their work – you can learn a lot that way.

Finally, if you need help finding your way around the site, give me or Nik a shout and we’ll point you in the right direction. For instance, you don’t need to repeat your posts in several different forums… one is enough.

Dee